Sunday is set to be a red-letter day for Greek tennis. Tennis stars  Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari both will be in finals action, with Tsitsipas playing in the Gstaad final and Sakkari in the final of her home event in Athens. And right after Tsitsipas received the news of Sakkari’s win, he had nothing but praise for his compatriot for her remarkable run to the final.

“Proud of @mariasakkari‘s inspirational run this week in Athens,” posted Tsitsipas on X. “Seeing us both in finals on the same day is a special moment for Greek tennis. We’ve shared many milestones over the years, and this is just the beginning of another exciting chapter.”

This day is even more memorable for both players as it was their first time qualifying for the final of the respective events.

Sakkari has been in exceptional form in the past week in Athens, opening her campaign with a win over eighth-seeded Polina Kudermetova in the first round. With the home crowd behind her, she won against the likes of Harriet Dart, Alycia Parks, and Alina Korneeva to reach the final, where she will go up against third-seeded Barbora Krejcikova.

On the other hand, Tsitsipas himself has found his vintage form back, with the Greek reaching the final of the Gstaad Open, having already beaten two seeded players. He started his campaign with a win over fifth-seeded Ignacio Buse in the first round, which was a bit of a revenge as the Greek had lost to the Peruvian in Mallorca last month. Tsitsipas then had to play three three-set matches, winning against the likes of Jerome Kym, fourth-seeded Arthur Rindeknech, and Alexander Shevchenko to reach the final, where he will face seventh-seeded Raphael Collignon.

Even though they have not won a trophy for their nation, Tsitsipas and Sakkari have been regulars in the Greek team whenever the country has taken part in any nation-based event. Both have been part of Greece’s United Cup campaigns, playing a big role in a semifinal finish in 2021.

They have also played mixed doubles together at the Olympics in 2021, where they were one win away from competing in the medal rounds.

There is no doubt that Tsitsipas and Sakkari playing Tour-level finals on the same day is good news for Greek news, but given the downward spiral both have experienced over the last couple of seasons, a title will do a lot to boost their individual morale as well.

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari Are Both on Their Way Up on the Rankings

At their peak, both Tsitsipas and Sakkari reached No. 3 in the rankings, with strong Grand Slam results. However, the last two seasons have not been great for either of them, with Sakkari struggling with injuries and Tsitsipas just going through a loss of form. Coming into this season, Sakkari was outside the Top 50, whereas Tsitspas was ranked 85 before the start of the Gstaad Open.

Sakkari has gradually made her way up the rankings once more, thanks to her semifinal run at the WTA 1000 event in Doha. She has had decent third-round runs at Indian Wells, the French Open, and Wimbledon, which saw her ranked 37 before the Athens Open. After reaching the final in her home event, the Greek player has gone up to 33 on the live rankings. This is Sakkari’s first Tour-level final since she reached the Indian Wells final back in 2024.

For Tsitsipas, the freefall has been even starker, as the Greek player has suffered a series of losses that saw his ranking almost drop out of the Top 100. The fact that he is unseeded at an ATP 250 event and needed a wildcard for a direct entry at Washington later this month shows the decline of the former World No.3’s fortunes. However, his last run in Gstaad has seen him rise 20 spots to No. 65 in the rankings, and if the Greek wins the title, he could reach as high as No. 51.

Like Sakkari, Tsitsipas is also playing a Tour-level final after some time, as the Greek last played a final in Dubai in 2025, where he won. Given the form of the last two years, a title will do wonders for both Tsitsipas and Sakkari, with the North American hard-court swing only a few weeks away.